About

Cambria Heights

Tell City Hall: Invest in Libraries!

Libraries are a lifeline for all New Yorkers. People from every background rely on library services—from ESOL classes to early literacy programs to technology training—to help them learn and discover new opportunities.

Queens Public Library Magazine

Queens Public Library Magazine combines great library-themed feature stories and two months' worth of information about our free programs, services, and special events, and it's available at your neighborhood library or ...

Everyone has a voice. Everyone has a story. Bring yours and join us for writing and sharing work in a supportive, respectful environment. Poetry, plays, short stories, and everything in between – all crafted in one room! Tap into your unwritten stories at this free workshop for writers (teens and adults) of all experience levels, backgrounds, and genres. Writing prompts and materials will be provided. No sign up required -- simply turn up!

Additional Program Dates/Locations

This is a recurring program. If registration is required, you must register individually.

Additional Dates

Party and silence do not usually go together unless the venue of the party is your favorite library! Put on your party shoes and your headphones and join us in a dancing party that won’t disturb the rest of the Library’s patrons but is sure to make you move to the rhythm of DJ Sparkx!

Based on Richard Wright's searing autobiography, performed by Tarantino Smith, and adapted and directed by Wynn Handman, "Black Boy" dramatizes the author's journey from childhood innocence to adulthood in the Jim Crow South. It is both the unashamed confession of a proud non-conformist and a profound indictment of social injustice and human suffering.

History

Cambria Heights was originally a farming community which supplied produce to Brooklyn and Manhattan. It began developing in 1923 on 163 acres of land bought by Oliver B. LaFreniere, a real-estate agent. It acquired the name Cambria in about 1924 from its owner the ‘Cambria Title Savings and Trust Company’ a coal concern located in Cambria County, Pennsylvania. “Heights” was added because of the area’s high elevation.

First populated by Jewish, German, Irish and Italian residents, the community became a predominantly Black, middle-class suburb after the Second World War. Present demographics reveal a community comprised predominantly of African Americans and West Indians.

Library service for the community began in 1930 with the establishment of a bookmobile stop on Linden Boulevard for one hour a week. The following year, the bookmobile moved to PS 147 where it provided service to the children for a few hours each week. Service expanded as demand grew leading eventually to the need for a regular library.

Campaign efforts by a committee of the Civic Association resulted in the opening on July 15, 1949 of a sub-branch in rental quarters on Linden Boulevard. In 1964, the rental facilities were expanded and upgraded to a new location, 220-20 Linden boulevard, where it remained until 2006.

The latest incarnation of the Cambria Heights library is a state-of-the-art facility located at 218-13 Linden Boulevard. Opened in 2006, the library offers computers, WiFi, programs and materials of all types for all ages.